CHARLES GOUNOD
Gounod: Romeo et Juliette [Romeo and Juliet] (complete opera recorded in 2011) BLU-RAY Arena di Verona / Nino Machaidze, Ketevan Kemoklidze, Cristina Melis / Fabio Mastrangello (cond) [ Bel Air Classiques Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 1/Apr/2013 ] "[Machaidze] seems to be the Juliette of choice today and this video makes clear why that's the case: lovely singing and a demeanour that manages to be sensual and innocent at once." (International Record Review) |
Ballet de l'Opéra de Paris, Hugo Marchand, Amandine Albisson, Matthias Heymann, Mathieu Ganio, Léonore Baulac, Germain Louvet, Dorothée Gilbert, Paul
Opéra de Paris: A Very Special Season (a Film By Priscilla Pizzato) BLU-RAY [ BelAir classiques Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 27/May/2022 ] The Paris Opera Ballet is one of the most active dance companies in the world. The dancers, used to practicing 5 to 7 hours a day, develop themselves by working with coaches and choreographers. |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Gotterdammerung (Complete opera recorded in 2022) BLU-RAY Bayreuther Festspiele / Clay Hilley, Iréne Theorin, Albert Dohmen, Elisabeth Teige, Michael Kupfer-Radecky / Cornelius Meister (cond) [ Deutsche Grammophon Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 27/Oct/2023 ] In 2022 Bayreuth Festival 2022 presented a long-awaited new production of Der Ring des Nibelungen, staged by young Austrian director Valentin Schwarz and conducted by Cornelius Meister. |
GIOACCHINO ROSSINI
Rossini: L'Italiana In Algeri (complete opera recorded in 2018) BLU-RAY Salzburg Festival / Cecilia Bartoli, Ildar Abdrazakov, Edgardo Rocha, Alessandro Corbelli, José Coca Loza / Jean-Christophe Spinosi (cond) [ C Major Blu-Ray / Blu-ray - released 9/Aug/2019 ] "The role of Isabella is sung to perfection by Cecilia Bartoli - a clever, independent woman with an adventurous streak" (New York Times). Bartoli's superb performance in Gioachino Rossini's L'Italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers) at... |
GAETANO DONIZETTI
Donizetti: Don Pasquale (complete opera recorded in 2006) BLU-RAY Zurich Opera / Juan Diego Florez, Isabel Rey, Ruggero Raimondi, Oliver Widmer / Nello Santi (cond) [ Decca Music Group Limited Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 12/Mar/2009 ] Decca presents Florez in one of his most famous stage roles with this performance of Donizetti's irresistible comedy from Zurich Opera House. This is the first recording, both audio and visual, of Flórez singing the role of Ernesto. |
NICOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV
Rimsky-Korsakov: Christmas Eve (complete opera recorded in 2021) BLU-RAY Frankfurt Opera / Julia Muzychenko, Enkelejda Shkoza, Alexey Tikhomirov, Anthony Robin Schneider / Sebastian Weigle (cond) [ Naxos Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 11/Nov/2022 ] "Loy masses his choral scenes with gusto, and draws the characters with compassion and wit. It's the mixture of cheerfulness and melancholy that makes this opera sing, and Loy walks the line without compromise to his own aesthetic." Gramophone |
GAETANO DONIZETTI
Donizetti: L'Elisir D'Amore (Complete opera recorded in August 2009) BLU-RAY Glyndebourne Opera / Ekaterina Siurina, Peter Auty, Alfredo Daza / Annabel Arden (Director) / Maurizio Benini (Conductor) [ Opus Arte Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/Aug/2011 ] "An enchanting account. Set in Mussolini's Italy...it is wonderfully cast and a perfect team effort." (BBC Music) |
SAMUEL BARBER
Barber: Vanessa (Complete opera recorded in 2019) BLU-RAY Glyndebourne Opera / Emma Bell, Virginie Verrez, Edgaras Montvidas, Rosalind Plowright / Jakub Hrůša (cond) [ Opus Arte Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 5/Jun/2019 ] BBC Music Award WINNER 2020 - DVD/Blu-ray |
GIOACCHINIO ROSSINI
Rossini: La Cenerentola [Cinderella] (complete opera directed by Peter Hall in 2005) BLU-RAY Glyndebourne Opera / Raquela Sheeran / Lucia Cirillo / Ruxandra Donose / Nathan Berg / Vladimir Jurowski (cond) [ Opus Arte Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 1/Aug/2008 ] DVD Blu-Ray - "The BD disc offers an excellent reproduction of the "live" experience that will surely warm the hearts of those who cannot make it to the opera house often enough." (Blu-Ray.com) |
UMBERTO GIORDANO
Giordano: Andrea Chenier (Blu-ray) Bayerische Staatsoper, Jonas Kaufmann, George Petean, Anja Harteros / Marco Armiliato (cond) [ BSO Recordings / Blu-ray - released 18/Aug/2023 ] First performed in 1896, Andrea Chénier is rightly regarded as one of the key works of verismo. With his melodrama about the historical poet André Chénier during the upheavals of the French Revolution, the composer Umberto Giordano created an... |
ERICH WOLFGANG KORNGOLD
Korngold: Die tote Stadt (complete opera recorded in 2019) (Blu-ray) Bayerische Staatsoper / Jonas Kaufmann, Marlis Petersen, Andrej Filonczyk, Jennifer Johnston / Kirill Petrenko (cond) [ BSO Recordings Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 30/Jul/2021 ] "There's a depth and emotional intelligence to this staging that disarmed my initial resistance...on every level, a glorious achievement." Gramophone Award Finalist 2022 - Opera |
GIOCOMO PUCCINI
Jonas Kaufmann: An Evening With Puccini (recorded in 2015) BLU-RAY Jonas Kaufmann (tenor) / Filarmonica della Scala, Jochen Rieder [ Sony Classical Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/Apr/2016 ] On the 14th June 2015, German tenor Jonas Kaufmann walked onto the stage of La Scala Milan, the home of Italian opera, for one of the most highly anticipated performances of last year. The concert of Puccini arias made national news in Italy, and... |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: La finta giardiniera (complete opera recorded in 2018) BLU-RAY Teatro alla Scala / Krešimir Špicer, Julie Martin du Theil, Bernard Richter / Diego Fasolis (cond) [ Naxos Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 9/Jul/2021 ] "The whole, remarkably filmed by Daniela Vismara, is to be seen by all those who are reluctant to opera: conversion is guaranteed!" © 2021 Crescendo |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Don Giovanni, K527 (complete opera recorded in 2011) BLU-RAY La Scala Milan / Anna Netrebko, Bryn Terfel, Anna Prohaska, Barbara Frittoli / Daniel Barenboim (conductor) [ Deutsche Grammophon Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 6/Dec/2015 ] Recorded live at the opening of the 2011-12 La Scala season, Don Giovanni was released in honour of Bryn Terfel's 50th birthday which was on 9 November 2015. It also tied in with the traditional opening of the new season at La Scala - 7 December. |
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH
Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk (complete opera recorded in 2008) BLU-RAY Maggio Muiscale Florentino / Jeanne Michele Charbonnet, Vladimir Vaneev, Vsevolod Grivnov / James Conlon (cond) [ Arthaus Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 10/Oct/2012 ] "New Orleans-raised Jeanne-Michèle Charbonnet proves a powerful if one-dimensional actress in the title-role. The other key protagonists are authentically Russian. The most distinguished singing comes from Vladimir Vaneev... The main attraction of... |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Salome (complete opera recorded in 2009) BLU-RAY Royal Opera House / Nadja Michael, Michael Volle, Michaela Schuster, Thomas Moser / Philippe Jordan [ Opus Arte Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 1/Aug/2010 ] "Nadia Michael… is an attractive Salome, moving like a dancer, as physically unafraid as she is vocally… Michael Volle is an imposing, rich-toned Narraboth" (Gramophone) |
FRANCESCO CAVALLI
Ercole Amante (complete opera recorded in 2009) BLU-RAY Netherlands Opera / Luca Pisaroni, Veronica Cangemi, Anna Maria Panzarella, Marlin Miller / Concerto Koln, Ivor Bolton (cond) [ Opus Arte / BBC Blu-Ray / 2 Blu-ray Disc - released 1/Aug/2011 ] "The production, like the piece, is moving, funny and literally action-packed. Alden knows well when to fill or empty his stage....Bolton leads his large authentic-instrument forces with gusto...Hugely recommended." (Gramophone) |
GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
Handel: Semele (Blu-ray) Emma Pearson, Amitai Pati, Sarah Castle, Paul Whelan / New Zealand Opera Chorus, Holy Trinity Cathedral Choir, NZ Opera Baroque Orchestra, Peter Walls [ Opus Arte Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 21/Jul/2023 ] "Amitai Pati is the pick of the bunch. The Samoan tenor is an outstanding Jupiter, bright-toned and fullvoiced, lyrical lines anchored by enough weight to make this reluctant smiter believable as both lover and thug." Gramophone |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: La Traviata (Complete opera recorded in 2014) BLU-RAY Paris Opera / Diana Damrau, Francesco Demuro, Ludovic Tézier / Francesco Ivan Ciampa (cond) [ Erato / Warner Classics Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 4/Sep/2015 ] "Violetta is played by Diana Damrau, a soprano of matchless intelligence. Technically, she is perfectly at ease in a role that has sometimes been described as demanding too much of one singer." Guardian |
GAETANO DONIZETTI
Donizetti: Don Pasquale (complete opera recorded in 2006) BLU-RAY Ravenna Festival / Claudio Desderi, Mario Cassi, Francisco Gatell & Laura Giordano / Riccardo Muti (conductor) [ Arthaus Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 10/May/2010 ] Watching this realistic, young and vital production, directed by the young Andrea da Rosa and listening to a high potential and unspent young cast, you feel how powerful, charming and timeless this score by Gaetano Donizetti is. |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 1 - 9 (Recorded live from the Opéra Bastille and the Palais Garnier, Paris 2014-15) BLU-RAY Ricarda Merbeth, Daniela Sindram, Robert Dean Smitm, Günther Groissböck / Paris National Opera Chorus and Orchestra, Philippe Jordan [ Arthaus Blu-Ray / 3 Blu-ray Box Set - released 20/Sep/2016 ] "A seasoned Beethovenian will likely conclude that a lot of care and thought went into the interpretations as well." Classical-Net |
DONIZETTI / BELLINI / MOZART / PONCHIELLI / VERDI / PUCCINI / ROSSINI
Casta Diva: Famous Italian Arias and Scenes BLU-RAY Roberto Alagna, Angela Gheorghiu, Thomas Hampson, Yvonne Kenny, Eva Marton, Ann Murray, Dame Joan Sutherlan and others [ Arthaus Musik Blu-Ray / Blu-ray - released 10/Feb/2019 ] This collection of Famous Arias and Scenes, opera's finest, most exciting moments, will dazzle opera lovers and newcomers alike. |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Don Giovanni (complete opera recorded in 2014) BLU-RAY Royal Opera House, Covent Garden / Mariusz Kwiecien, Alex Esposito, Alexander Tsymbalyuk, Véronique Gens , Antonio Poli / Nicola Luisotti (cond [ Opus Arte Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/Nov/2014 ] Mozart's sublime tragic comedy offers boundless scope for directors, and Kasper Holten has chosen it to follow his directorial debut of Eugene Onegin. He wanted to shift the emphasis from Don Giovanni's sex life into a darker place, showing... |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute) (complete opera recorded in 2021) BLU-RAY Royal Opera House, Covent Garden / Mauro Peter, Siobhan Stagg, Roderick Williams, Sabine Devieilhe, Mika Kares / Julia Jones (cond) [ Opus Arte Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 26/Nov/2021 ] David McVicar's classic production embraces both the seriousness and comedy of Mozart's work. The audience is transported to a fantastical world of dancing animals, flying machines and dazzlingly starry skies. The setting provides a wonderful... |
BENJAMIN BRITTEN
Gloriana (complete opera recorded in June 2013) BLU-RAY Royal Opera House / Susan Bullock, Toby Spence, Patricia Bardon, Mark Stone, Kate Royal / Paul Daniel (conductor) [ Opus Arte Royal Opera House Collection Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 25/Nov/2013 ] "At its moments of greatest drama and pathos this 2013 production is undeniably effective." (MusicWeb) |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss (R.): Ariadne auf Naxos (complete opera recorded in 2012) BLU-RAY Staatskapelle Dresden / Renée Fleming, Robert Dean Smith, Sophie Koch / Christian Thielemann (cond) [ Decca Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/May/2015 ] Filmed live in Baden-Baden by the veteran director Brian Large, Renée Fleming makes her debut in the role of Ariadne together with fellow key Strauss interpreters Sophie Koch and Christian Thielemann, following on from their Rosenkavalier... |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Tannhauser (complete opera recorded in 2014) BLU-RAY Staatsoper Berlin / Peter Seiffert, Marina Prudenskaya, Ann Petersen, Peter Mattei, René Pape / Daniel Barenboim (cond) [ Bel Air Classiques Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 18/Dec/2015 ] "Daniel Barenboim provides spacious and lucid conducting … Mattei's finely enunciated Wolfram and Peter Seiffert encompassing the title-role's difficulties with a constant eye on their dramatic import." (Gramophone January 2016) |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: I due Foscari (complete opera recorded in 2016) BLU-RAY Teatro alla Scala / Plácido Domingo, Francesco Meli, Anna Pirozzi, Chiara Isotton / Michele Mariotti (cond) [ C-Major Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 28/Sep/2017 ] "The role, as well as being age-appropriate, seems to sit very well for Domingo's voice…Pirozzi is a terrific Lucrezia. The voice is bright and fearless…Mariotti's conducting - an expertly judged mixture of grandeur and fire - strikes me as no less i |
GIOACCHINO ROSSINI
Rossini: Il barbiere di Siviglia [The Barber of Seville] (complete opera recorded in 2017) BLU-RAY Theatre Des Champs-Elys / Florian Sempey, Catherine Trottmann, Michele Angelini, Péter Kálmán [ Naxos Unitel Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 7/Jul/2020 ] "The period orchestra is technically impressive and admirable in its range of colour. Jérémie Rhorer is a spirited conductor, conveying the score's sophistication in lithe, witty fashion." Opera |
LEOS JANACEK
Janacek: The Cunning Little Vixen (complete opera recorded in 1995) BLU-RAY Théâtre Musical de Paris - Châtelet / Thomas Allen, Eva Jenis, Hannah Minutillo , Ivan Kusnjer / Charles Mackerras (cond) [ Arthaus Legendary Performances BLU-RAY / Blu-ray Disc - released 1/Mar/2016 ] This enchanting production by Nicholas Hytner, sung in the original Czech, is conducted by Charles Mackerras, a master of the best Janáček style. Through myriad shifts of scene, the episodic story is presented in brightly coloured sets and costumes... |
GIACOMO PUCCINI
Puccini: Il Trittico (complete operas recorded in 2022) BLU-RAY Vienna Opera / Asmik Grigorian, Misha Kiria, Karita Mattila, Roman Burdenko / Franz Welser-Möst,(cond) [ Until Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 28/Jul/2023 ] Il trittico was premiered in New York on 14 December 1918, composed while the First World War was still raging in Europe. At first glance, the three one-act operas Gianni Schicchi, Il tabarro and Suor Angelica seem to have no connection with each... |
GAETANO DONIZETTI
Donizetti: L'elisir d'amore (complete opera recorded in 2005) BLU-RAY Vienna State Opera / Anna Netrebko, Rolando Villazón, Leo Nucci, Ildebrando D´Arcangelo / Alfred Eschwé (cond) [ Erato / Warner Classics Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 1/Nov/2015 ] Theatrical magic between Rolando Villazón and Anna Netrebko in Donizetti's delightful and ever-popular comedy L'elisir d'amore |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Die Zauberflöte ('The Magic Flute') (complete opera recorded in 2018) BLU-RAY Vienna State Opera / Matthias Goerne, Mauro Peter, Albina Shagimurotava, Christiane Karg / Constantinos Carydis (cond) [ C Major Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 1/Jul/2019 ] W.A. Mozart's timeless masterpiece at the Salzburg Festival is always an event! Especially when Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) receives such a 'spectacular and virtuosic staging' (Le Figaro) by director Lydia Steier. Steier introduces the role of... |
SAVERIO MERCADANTE
Mercadante: Francesca da Rimini (complete opera recorded in 2016) BLU-RAY Festival della Valle d'Itria, Martina Franca / Leonor Bonilla, Aya Wakizono, Merto Süngü, Antonio Di Matteo / Fabio Luisi (cond) [ Dynamic Blu-Ray / Blu-ray - released 1/Feb/2020 ] Written almost two centuries ago by Saverio Mercadante, coveted by many theatres of the day, Francesca da Rimini was, in fact, never staged. Every time it was scheduled for performance, something happened and it got canceled. |
BENJAMIN BRITTEN
Britten: Peter Grimes (complete opera filmed on Aldeburgh beach in 2013) BLU-RAY Alan Oke, Giselle Allen, David Kempster / Guildhall School of Music & Drama & Britten-Pears Orchestra, Steuart Bedford [ Arthaus Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 10/Feb/2019 ] GRAMOPHONE MAGAZINE AWARD NOMINATION 2014 |
CAVALLI
Cavalli: La Didone (complete opera recorded in 2011) BLU-RAY Anna Bonitatibus, Kresimir Spicer, Xavier Sabata, Maria Streijffert / Les Arts Florissants, William Christie (cond.) & Clément Hervieu-Léger (dir.) [ Opus Arte Bluray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/Feb/2013 ] "Christie's direction can almost be taken to guarantee a fine performance and that's the case here...If you wish to have only one Cavalli recording in your collection, this would vie strongly for that honour" MusicWeb International, October 2012 |
GEORGES BIZET
Bizet: Carmen (complete opera filmed in 2006) BLU-RAY Royal Opera House / Jonas Kaufmann, Anna Caterina Antonacci, Ildebrando D'Arcangelo / Antonio Pappano (conductor) [ Decca Music Group Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 25/Jan/2017 ] BLU-RAY - 'Kaufmann and Antonacci are that rare breed: superb singers who can also act with subtlety and passion' The Guardian |
GEORGES BIZET
Bizet: Carmen (complete opera recorded in 2014) BLU-RAY Arena di Verona / Ekaterina Semenchuk, Irina Lungu, Carlo Ventre, Carlos Álvarez, Francesca Micarelli / Henrik Nánási (cond) [ Bel Air Classiques Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 20/Jul/2017 ] "This is picture-postcard opera … It's traditional, it's colourful." Gramophone |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: La Traviata (complete opera recorded at the Baden-Baden Festspielhaus 2015) BLU-RAY Baden-Baden Festspielhaus / Olga Peretyatko, Atalla Ayan, Simone Piazzola, Emiliano Gonzalez Toro, Tom Fox / Pablo Heras-Casado (cond) [ C Major Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 1/Dec/2016 ] Staged by Rolando Villazón Star tenor and director Rolando Villazón's staging of La Traviata at the Festspielhaus in Baden Baden is "visually spectacular" (The Huffington Post) and made for "an enthusiastic reception for the premiere" (Stuttgarter... |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Un ballo in maschera (complete opera recorded in 2016) BLU-RAY Bavarian State Opera / Piotr Beczala, George Petean, Anja Harteros, Okka von der Damerau, Sofia Fomina / Zubin Mehta (cond) [ C Major BLU-RAY / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/Mar/2017 ] "Musically things are more than fine. Beczała pulls off this one hell of a tenor role…with style and confidence. Harteros gives her usual tightly focused emotional performance." Gramophone Magazine - Blu-ray of the Month - May 2017 |